Metadata-Driven State Transition Engine for Order Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing order management systems are complex and costly to implement and maintain due to product-specific business logic, which varies by asset class, requiring separate code bases and increasing development and testing efforts.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight, extensible framework that separates state transition logic from the main engine code by specifying it in metadata configuration files, allowing for automatic generation of rule code from human-readable documents, making the system asset class-agnostic and reducing implementation and maintenance costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If product-specific business logic is programmed into code for each asset class, then the system can handle different asset classes (equity, mutual funds, fixed income), but the code base becomes complex and costly to implement and maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the business logic from the state machine code by externalizing it into separate configuration files. Each asset class has its own configuration file defining states, transitions, and business rules, allowing the core engine to remain simple while supporting multiple asset classes through configuration rather than code changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces configuration files as an intermediary layer between the state machine engine and the business logic. This intermediary allows business rules to be defined externally in a human-readable format, which the engine then loads and executes, eliminating the need to hardcode asset-specific logic into the core system.
2Adaptability or versatility
If separate code bases are created for each asset class, then product-specific requirements can be met, but implementation and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal state machine engine that can handle multiple asset classes through a single code base. The engine is designed to be asset-class-agnostic, loading asset-specific behavior from configuration files, thereby providing multi-functionality without requiring separate code bases for each product type.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameters from which the system is hard-coded to configurable. Instead of having asset class behavior fixed in code, the system allows parameters such as states, transitions, and business rules to be changed via configuration files, making the system adaptable to different products without code modifications.
3Productivity
If business logic is embedded in the state machine code, then the system executes efficiently, but modifying business logic requires code changes and retesting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-compiling configuration files into optimized formats that can be efficiently executed by the state machine engine. The configuration files are processed and validated in advance, allowing the engine to run with high performance while the business logic remains externally definable and easily modifiable through configuration changes rather than code edits.
Data Source
AI summary
An order management system comprises a middle tier and a computer-based automatic rule code generation system. The middle tier comprises a state transition engine that manages rule-based state transitions of trade orders for financial products from one state to a next state in progressions of the trade orders. The computer-based automatic rule code generation system: (i) receives a human-readable state transition file that specifies one or more state transition rules and a corresponding condition for each of the one or more state transition rules; and (ii) generates, at compile time, a configuration file that comprises rule code for the one or more state transition rules from the state transition file. The state transition engine runs the rule code in the configuration file at runtime to manage the state transitions for the trade orders.